It looks like Rohingyas are creating another large illegal settlement up North of Malaysia. Gertak Sanggul is a village on the southwest of Penang Island and is approximately 30 kilometres from the state capital, Georgetown. The main economy here is agriculture, fisheries and pig farming. Image source: Google Map
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This was reported in the local news:-
Penduduk Gertak Sanggul resah kehadiran etnik Rohingya
Peningkatan jumlah penduduk etnik Rohingya di sekitar Gertak Sanggul, di sini, semakin membimbangkan warga tempatan berikutan timbul pelbagai isu berkait golongan itu, termasuk didakwa melanggar batas agama.
Difahamkan, kebanyakan mereka disyaki bekerja sebagai nelayan tanpa permit sah, selain tinggal menyewa di unit pangsapuri atau rumah di lokasi terbabit.
Penduduk tempatan, Mat Yassin Ahmad, 50, mendakwa senario itu bermula lebih 10 tahun lalu dengan kedatangan hanya lima keluarga etnik terbabit, namun jumlah komuniti berkenaan kini sudah mencecah kira-kira 800 orang.
Malah, beliau berkata, ia menyebabkan kawasan itu turut diberi jolokan ‘Bukit Malut kedua’ dalam kalangan penduduk setempat.
“Golongan itu mendakwa datang dari Pulau Dua, Myanmar, berhampiran Kedah, serta Bukit Malut di Langkawi, dengan menaiki bot membabitkan dua jam perjalanan.
Seorang lagi penduduk yang hanya mahu dikenali sebagai Izan, 40, memaklumkan bahawa kariah masjid di kawasan terbabit sudah dua kali mengusulkan bantahan kepada pihak berwajib, termasuk Jabatan Perikanan negeri, berhubung perkara itu.
Beliau mendakwa, bilangan sampan mencecah 60 buah kini menunjukkan jumlah penduduk etnik itu kian ramai dengan mempunyai ‘penghulu’ sendiri, selain bersikap mengabaikan kebersihan di kawasan pantai.
“Mereka dipercayai tidak tahu membaca atau menulis, malah jalan di luar kawasan Gertak Sanggul pun tidak tahu. Justeru timbul persoalan, bagaimana mereka didakwa mendapat MyKad dan sijil kelahiran?
(Source)
Loosely translated in English:-
The residents of Gertak Sanggul are worried about the presence of the Rohingyas.
The increase in the number of Rohingyas around Gertak Sanggul has caused the increased concern of the residents due to various social problems created by these Rohingyas including claims of indecency. It is reported that most of the Rohingyas are working as fishermen without valid permits and is renting condominium units or houses around the area.
One of the local residents, Mat Yassin Ahmad (50 years old), claims that the problem started more than 10 years ago with the arrival of 5 Rohingya families but now they have expanded to 800 Rohingyas. In fact, the name of the area is known as ‘Bukit Malut Kedua’ (referring to Rohingya stronghold in Langkawi called Bukit Malut).
The Rohingyas claimed that they came from Dua Island, Myanmar which is close to the state of Kedah by taking a two hours boat ride.
Another local, Izan (40 years old) claims that the number of unlicensed boats owned by the Rohingyas has reached 60 boats. This only shows the high number of Rohingyas in the area and they have their own village head. The beach cleanliness is not taken care of by these Rohingyas.
It is also alleged that these Rohingyas have the Malaysian National ID and birth certificates.
We have started to have pockets of these illegal immigrants who enter the country illegally from Myanmar and surely from the refugee camps in Bangladesh. Further if left unchecked, this only causes further social problems with the local residents. And over time, the number of them only increases, overtaking the local population and this further attracts more illegal intrusion of the national borders.
Of the bigger question to ask is what the local authorities have been doing all this while considering that this issue has been ongoing for the last 10 years and they blatantly having unlicensed boats.